# Newshour Interviews, news and analysis of the day’s global events. Page: Feed: --- ## [Ukraine's former defence minister calls for election](http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w1730bn5672cdw9) _2026-08-19_ Ukraine's former defence minister, Mykhailo Fedorov has called for elections - which are barred in wartime under Ukrainian law. A representative of the Presidential Office has told the BBC that it would be bizarre to plan elections amidst missiles and drones. Earlier, around two hundred protestors gathered outside Ukraine's parliament, in protest against the swearing in of the new defence… [Listen](http://open.live.bbc.co.uk/mediaselector/6/redir/version/2.0/mediaset/audio-nondrm-download-rss-low/proto/http/vpid/p0p59zqr.mp3) ## [Opening of Meta trial on social media addiction claims](http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w1730bn56729c63) _2026-08-18_ A landmark trial has begun in California with the tech giant Meta accused of deliberately making Facebook and Instagram addictive to children. We'll hear the case for the prosecution and the defence. Also on the programme: a court in Damascus sentences to death a cousin of the deposed dictator Bashar al-Assad; and how short-sighted tree-shrews could be a big help to humans. (Photo: A woman holds a… [Listen](http://open.live.bbc.co.uk/mediaselector/6/redir/version/2.0/mediaset/audio-nondrm-download-rss-low/proto/http/vpid/p0p55x2r.mp3) ## [Intense overnight attacks in both Russia and Ukraine](http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w1730bn56728hz6) _2026-08-18_ Nine people have been killed and 23 injured, including a child, in Ukrainian strikes on Russia, local officials have said. Russian attacks on Ukraine also killed at least seven people and injured more than 39 on Saturday night. We hear from Kyiv and Moscow. Also on the programme: Pakistan's Supreme Court orders authorities to move former prime minister Imran Khan to hospital from jail for health… [Listen](http://open.live.bbc.co.uk/mediaselector/6/redir/version/2.0/mediaset/audio-nondrm-download-rss-low/proto/http/vpid/p0p55vdt.mp3) ## [No breakthrough on stalled Gaza deal](http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w1730bn56726g90) _2026-08-17_ Lengthy talks between President Trump's envoy, Jared Kushner, and the Israeli Prime Minister have failed to achieve a breakthrough on the Gaza peace proposals. We'll hear from Israel and from a former Hamas official in Gaza. Also on the programme: a prominent Russian anti-war politician, Lev Shlosberg, has been sentenced to 11 years in a penal colony; and the best-selling author Annie Jacobsen… [Listen](http://open.live.bbc.co.uk/mediaselector/6/redir/version/2.0/mediaset/audio-nondrm-download-rss-low/proto/http/vpid/p0p518nf.mp3) ## [Kushner meets Netanyahu after Hamas talks on peace plan](http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w1730bn56725m23) _2026-08-17_ President Trump's Middle East envoy, Jared Kushner, has met Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as he seeks Israeli backing for the US-backed Gaza peace plan. Mr Netanyahu has rejected the proposals. Israeli officials said today's meeting focused on elements that could be agreed. Also on the programme: Mr Trump says he's scaling back joint military exercises with South Korea, describing them as… [Listen](http://open.live.bbc.co.uk/mediaselector/6/redir/version/2.0/mediaset/audio-nondrm-download-rss-low/proto/http/vpid/p0p4zmrf.mp3) ## [Brazil's campaign for president begins](http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w1730bn4tyrzq3r) _2026-08-16_ President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva has promised Brazilians he will not stop fighting to secure them a better future as he launched his campaign for re-election. In a speech in a Sao Paulo stadium, the 80 year-old said he understood his fellow countrymen much better than more privileged people - a dig at his main rival, Flavio Bolsonaro, the son of the former president. The right-wing candidate… [Listen](http://open.live.bbc.co.uk/mediaselector/6/redir/version/2.0/mediaset/audio-nondrm-download-rss-low/proto/http/vpid/p0p4w9gc.mp3) ## [Rescue efforts continue in Indonesia](http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w1730bn4tyryr4q) _2026-08-16_ About 5000 people have been displaced on Indonesia's Flores island, after an earthquake hit the region, followed by hundreds of aftershocks. Many families spent the night in makeshift shelters outside their collapsed homes. They say they are not receiving enough help from Jakarta. Also in the programme: New South Wales is launching a gun buyback scheme; and President Lula da Silva launches his… [Listen](http://open.live.bbc.co.uk/mediaselector/6/redir/version/2.0/mediaset/audio-nondrm-download-rss-low/proto/http/vpid/p0p4v5k9.mp3) ## [Was the US right to leave Afghanistan?](http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w1730bn4tyrwt6n) _2026-08-15_ The Taliban authorities in Afghanistan have been celebrating the fifth anniversary of their return to power in Kabul. But they continue to face allegations of severe repression of women and girls, who are now virtually excluded from all public life. The BBC's Lyse Doucet has an assessment of life under the Taliban and she talks to two former BBC Afghan journalists who managed to escape rule under… [Listen](http://open.live.bbc.co.uk/mediaselector/6/redir/version/2.0/mediaset/audio-nondrm-download-rss-low/proto/http/vpid/p0p4s67g.mp3) ## [Taliban celebrates five years since they took control of Afghanistan](http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w1730bn4tyrvv7m) _2026-08-15_ The Taliban is celebrating 5 years since they seized-back control of Afghanistan - with parades and events that women are banned from joining. The BBC's Lyse Doucet joins us live from Kabul with an assessment of life under the Taliban, and why so many women fear for their safety with the extremists back in charge. Also in the programme: We'll have the latest on the Indonesian earthquake; we'll… [Listen](http://open.live.bbc.co.uk/mediaselector/6/redir/version/2.0/mediaset/audio-nondrm-download-rss-low/proto/http/vpid/p0p4qlwn.mp3) ## [Watch Chovy Code Live (Sponsored)](https://crawlproof.com/a/X0xkGPQlwf9c) _2026-08-15 · **Sponsored**_ Join live coding streams with real-time collaborative screen sharing, open source and free. ## [Afghanistan: Five years after the Taliban takeover](http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/w1730bn4tyrsx9k) _2026-08-14_ The BBC's Chief International Correspondent, Lyse Doucet, returns to Afghanistan to report on the state of the country after five years of Taliban rule. She also brings us an interview with Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid. Later, we hear from the American four-star general David Petraeus, who led US forces in Afghanistan for a year. Also in the programme: Colombian Vice-President Jose Manuel… [Listen](http://open.live.bbc.co.uk/mediaselector/6/redir/version/2.0/mediaset/audio-nondrm-download-rss-low/proto/http/vpid/p0p4myjh.mp3)